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Posts Tagged ‘Hugh Jackman’

The other day I decided to write a poem. I was in a weird mood, and so the poem is weird, but I like it, so I’m posting it here. It’s written in free verse, so if that isn’t your thing…That’s fine, too. :)

Also, please don’t make any assumptions/rash judgments until you reach the end. Thank you kindly.

Oh, and all rights reserved. And all that.

I Am Not a Psychopath

I am not a psychopath.

I kill people most violently

I dream of ways to poison a man

I make everyone’s life as miserable as I can

I manipulate people’s emotions

I turn sister on brother

Friend on friend

Villain on sidekick

I revel in anger

Abandonment

Bitterness

And most of all

Tragic backstories

I can’t help but imagine every way a situation can go wrong

I’m like a walking Murphy’s Law

No, I am not a psychopath

I’m just a writer.

(the end)

So, there you go. I hope you enjoyed it. If you didn’t, please go away.

Anyways, uh…

HUGH JACKMAN MOMENT.

Admit it, you’re excited about The Wolverine. Also, I’m thinking of starting A Thing where I post pictures of Hugh Jackman on a weekly basis. Why, you ask? Well, the answer is self-explanatory, I think. Hugh Jackman is a wonderful human being and ought to be blogged about. So anyways, that might be A Thing. Now you’re forewarned of the possible awesomeness to come.

This morning I went on a bike ride. A bike ride that, in any other circumstances, would have been harmless. Unfortunately, today it was 50°Fahrenheit and raining. And I was wearing shorts and a T-shirt.

Needless to say, it was rather trying. However, I knew that I couldn’t turn back. Why? Two reasons:

I am brave, unafraid, and willing to face any conditions in the name of exercise.

I live in the middle of the country, had no phone on my person, and was surrounded by either trees or bars.

(But that’s irrelevant.)

The point is, even though I was entirely numb and freezing and feeling crappy, I continued. I didn’t really have a choice, of course, which makes this whole scenario a little less noble, but the point is that I continued biking through the rain for a whole hour.

Writers face the same sort of challenge.

First drafts are beasts for almost anybody. Everyone likes the notion of pounding out a first draft. Everyone wants to be able to say, “Well, you know, I’ve finished writing a novel…” But we all find out that it isn’t as easy as that. I’ve started countless stories and have hit the 20-page mark only to let them fizzle out and die. And while the idea of Finishing A Novel is certainly attractive, I usually end up procrastinating anyway. Conversations like these are not uncommon in my mind:

“I should write something today.”

“But I don’t want to!”

“How will I ever finish my draft if I don’t?”

“You can write another time. You should check your email like you’re OCD instead.”

“But…”

“JUST SHUT UP OKAY YOU DON’T NEED TO WRITE TODAY. GEEZ.”

My Inner Distraction is very persuasive sometimes. Most of the time, actually. And I’m sure that lots of people suffer from the nasty procrastination virus, as well. But knowing that other people are lazy writers doesn’t really help.

So…what does help?

Well, I could prescribe a bunch of supposed writer’s block remedies, including NaNoWriMo, Write or Die, word wars, and lots more. And while these certainly help (NaNo in particular), none of them are particularly tried-and-true. Having word wars doesn’t automatically mean you’re going to finish your first draft in a month. Going to Write or Die may not increase your daily word sum. In fact, it could move you to throw your computer out your window in a fit of anger. And while NaNoWriMo certainly helps me write a lot for the month of November, it doesn’t help for the 11 other months in the year. So, really, there’s only one simple solution:

Sometimes, you just need to sit down and write.

Don’t waste time trying to find the special cure to writer’s block, because the only cure to writer’s block is writing. Duh, guys. And in order to write, you kind of have to…write. Plop down in front of your computer or notebook, and write. Maybe you don’t feel like plodding forward in your first draft. In that case, write a random excerpt. It may even give you inspiration to write in your regular novel. Who knows? But in order to get inspiration, you need to start writing. Anything. Everything. THE POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS, PEEPS. JUST WRITE.

I’m sure some or most of you have heard that writing is like a muscle. You need to exercise it regularly in order to get better at it. And while this simile is a little overused at times, it couldn’t be truer. The more you do it, the better you’ll get. And the more you do it, the easier it will be to just sit down randomly and write. Take that, writer’s block.

And yes, this is a simple, somewhat overused writing tip. But it will never get old, so why not reiterate it?

Sometimes you just need to sit down and write.

So…go write something.

(Afterthought: While it’s true that the aforementioned writing tip helps most of the time, sometimes other techniques can help, as well. I find it particularly helpful to think of Hugh Jackman.)

Like this:

…I’m not really OCD, guys. I do sometimes have OCD tendencies (my daily life: “NO! THAT’S A TYPO. YOU CAN’T WRITE THAT!” “Hey, those two things are just a teeny bit crooked… *aligns* …That’s better.”), and one of them is making lists. Incessantly. My epic ninja friend Erin invented a bunch of different lists on her blog, all regarding movies, actors, television series, you know, the good stuff. I couldn’t resist making my own.

Without further ado, then, here are my top fives of…everything important.

Top 5 Favorite Animated Movies

Wreck-It Ralph

How to Train Your Dragon

Brave

Tangled

Rise of the Guardians

Top 5 Favorite Superhero Movies

The Avengers

The Amazing Spider-man

The Dark Knight Rises

X-Men: First Class

Thor

Top 5 Favorite Comedies

Alvin and the Chipmunks (it’s cute, okay? And one of the most quotable movies ever. Bonus points. Oh, and it’s funny. Duh, guys.)

Juno

Someone Like You (Also, Hugh Jackman.)

Legally Blonde

You Again

Top 5 Favorite Movies as a Kid

High School Musical (all three of them. I was THE hugest fan. Sometimes I question my sanity as a child.)

Star Wars (You read that right.)

Tweety & Sylvester (the old Looney Tunes videos, ya know? I actually still find them funny…)

You’re Invited to Mary-Kate & Ashley’s Ballet Party (This list is almost starting to get embarrassing.)

Disneyland Fun (it was a singalong video that I adored, because one of my childhood dreams was to go to Disneyland. But really, whose wasn’t?!)

(Side note: I had a very eclectic taste in movies as a child. BTW.)

5 Worst Movies EVER

I don’t watch many crappy movies. I can’t name any off the top of my head…

Top 5 Book-to-Movie Adaptations:

The Hunger Games

The Hobbit part 1 (This is the part of the show where I admit I’ve never read the LotR trilogy, and therefore can’t judge the movies based on the books, but I have read The Hobbit, so there.)

Pride and Prejudice (the Keira Knightley version, mind you.)

The Help (it omitted a lot, of course–the book is HUGE!–but I really liked the movie, so it makes the cut)

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

(Another side note: Hopefully, The Great Gatsby will make it onto this list once I see it.)

Top 5 Movies You Were Most Excited to See in Theatres

The Hunger Games

The Avengers

Les Misérables

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Catching Fire (yes, I know it isn’t released until November 22nd, but I’m already so excited for it, I’m not breathing. No lie.)

Top 5 Cutest Animals in Movies

The Chipmunks (from Alvin and the Chipmunks. They’re even cuter when they talk.)